"How To": 2002 - 06 Chevrolet Avalanche Tailgate Handle Repair
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- čas přidán 22. 07. 2024
- Due to being made of plastic, the tailgate handles on many GMT800 trucks end up breaking, and this includes the Avalanche. Due to its unique tailgate design though, the process of replacing the handle on the Avalanche is a little different compared to the Silverado and Sierra models. Don't worry though, it's still an easy job that you can have done in under 20 minutes with basic hand tools.
I used a Dorman replacement handle in black, but you can also get one on chrome. It only cost me $23 from RockAuto.com and that was after shipping.
Tailgate Handle Part Number:
DORMAN 82778
Where to Buy:
www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.... - Auta a dopravní prostředky
Hey Matt, huge thank-you! Exactly what I needed. I also appreciated you not cutting out the fiddling around to get the new one in. It’s a little bit of a pain, now I will know I’m not doing something wrong. Thanks to your beautiful wife, too. Her camera work made my life easier today. Hope someone returns the favor.
I know this video is a few years old.. but it is forever timely for those that need to see it.
My dilemma, was more severe; One of the (white) plastic retainers that "grab" the threads on threaded rods shattered, (age related embrittlement I assumed) thus letting go of the rod and not disengaging / operating the drivers side latch
My solution: I replaced both (plastic) retainers, added lock nuts on the end of the rods, then used 'zip ties' on the (new) retainers to hold the new plastic retainers together (hopefully forever).
The parts cost was VERY minimal. The skills to do the work moderate (just as in your video) the frustration level until I figured it out was significant.
TIP: don't forget to lube the latches also.
Great info right here!
i wish all how to videos were as well shown and well explained as this. cheers!
That piece that he said people are cutting off has a role to play in keeping shit out of the tailgate handle mechanism. Also it make the tailgate a bit more difficult to by pass the lock. Also the C shaped thin flat metal piece on the handle at the lower right bottom of the handle is the locking mech. The lock cylinder lever goes inside of that and pushes it upward to lock and downward to unlock. You should be careful not to bend or distort that thin metal or the lever on the lock. Doing so can make the lock malfunction.
Bunch of good info here. Thanks, David!
Hey Matt, this seriously was so perfect and awesome. I’ve had my handle broken off like five years ago and I always thought it was gonna be a pain in the ass to fix it. Yes, I procrastinate, but this video made me realize I could do it myself. I would like to throw out that if anyone had problems with opening up the latch that I noticed if I didn’t Have those rods in as much as possible it wasn’t working for me. Basically, I snapped the left rod at the very end when it should’ve been a little little bit more in so it would actually grab the rod and pull the latch open. Either way, it’s really appreciated that you took the time to make this video because you have helped many including me.
Thanks for posting this man. Excellent observations. About to tear into it now.
thank you SO much for mentioning the retaining clips and which position to have them. I couldn't figure out why it would unlatch but it couldn't stay shut.
The clips are typically where folks mess up and run into issues. Glad to have helped!
Thanks, I'll be working on mine this evening.
Excellent walk through! Thanks a ton!
Call awesome video! Thank you for posting this improving that in spite of GM’s engineering anything can be fixed.
sometimes it really does make you wonder why they have things designed the way they do, but in the end, there actually is a reason behind it all. The other side is that engineers are often constrained by what the design team dictates are "must haves", and have to work within those constraints. This is what often leads to those really frustrating maintenance jobs.
Thanks for showing the process to install it without cutting the tailgate piece. I replaced my latch and did cut it off. The downside of cutting the tailgate is it exposes the latch to more weather / rain. After a few years of exposure, the lock mechanism rusted to the point the key wouldn't turn it any more. I had to pull the cover off and use WD-40 and white lithium grease to get it moving again.
Yeah, there's a reason the engineers of these things designed them the way they did. Everything has a purpose, even if we think I may be dumb at times. For me, I just don't like cutting up my truck if I don't have to. Whether it was Jeeps or other vehicles I've owned in the past, I tried the cut as little as possible, and even then, only cut if it 100% needed it to fulfill what I wanted from the vehicle (i.e. trimming wheel wells to fit larger tires).
Hey guys it’s worth noting here if anyone wants the to do a “poor man’s fix” for this issue… a new latch is actually not needed. Mine broke and I haven’t ordered a new one yet and I just took the broken one off thanks to this video. And after some investigating the tailgate can actually be lowered extremely easily with just a pair of pliers. Use them on each of the metal bars that the plastic clips connect to and pull each of them toward the middle of the truck and the tailgate will open right up. You don’t even need to pull on them at the same time you can use one pair of pliers and just pull on them one at a time. When you pull on them you will here the mechanism actuate as if the lever was being pulled. Just keep a pair of pliers in the glove box and you’re good to go! (Unfortunately it does look kinda ugly with no latch back there tho so keep that in mind)
Awesome explanation man thank you. You nailed it 👍🏼
Glad it helped!
Nice job! Thank you, kindly!
This was perfect, just bought a 2004, handle just broke. Thanks for posting
Glad it helped!
Your video was awesome and helped me out a ton. Thanks so much!
Glad it helped. Whole reason I even created the channel was to help others with doing their own repairs and maintenance.
On my third one in 187k, this is great video for a reminder
Thank you just did it to mine !!
Glad it helped!
Thank you very much
From Kuwait
Glad it helped!
Please for the love of god do you know the bolt sizes for the 3 T40s my tailgate is missing them and i cant find the sizes anywhere!
great video. appreciate it.
Glad it was helpful!
I got stuck on the "tab" which is in the middle of the liftgate. Could not remove the handle because that frickin tab was in the way. Was about to try to take the plastic trim piece (on the inside of the gate) but that seems glued on or something. Decided to check YT and voila, all I had to do was bend the tab a bit. It began to break (it seems to be fiberglass or FMP) but this is okay. Customer will never see it!
Thanks!
Thank you good sir
It helps to show U.S. thanks
Nice when it don't have cover over bed....try that one,then let us know. Oh and drivers rod also fell down in tailgate...I will be looking forward to this video
Open the midgate and release the rear cover from inside the bed. Easy. As for the rod, a magnet does wonders.
@@takeroadslesstraveled6505 we removed the cover from inside,got to the three bolts had to impact hammer 2 out,the other someone had already attempted and totally rounded star out. Welder came to rescue,someone Red lock tight all bolts,idiots. Had to totally remove tailgate,the bar was off the gate latch laying in bottom. Thank God for Operation game when I was a kid.
Something that I was expecting was that the left threaded rod dropped in the tailgate when unclipped. Wondering if it's happened to others?
Gravity my friend. I probably should have said to put some painters tape on them to hold them in place.
I am replacing a handle at my shop now. Neither rod dropped for me but it's because Cadillac provided a plastic cover on the inside of the liftgate in which the rods poke through. Maybe this was an in-factory solution. 🔨
Trying to replace the tailgate on a 2002 alvanlance the clips don't clip is there a certain way to clip the rods in place
You may have to replace the clips if they won’t lock onto the bar.
My tailgate won't latch shut. I have the 02. Would replacing the latch possibly solve this? I have one waiting in my mailbox.
sounds like it's stuck in the "open" position. I would pull the handle assembly and be sure everything operates smoothly (rust or damaged parts could be an issue), as well as making sure the rod retainer clips are good. if it's just a rust issue, you may be able to fix it just by cleaning it all up and using some WD40 on moving components. Otherwise, replace the assembly.
Is there a way to open the tail gate some how....i have all my top covers n all my tools stuck inside....
Open the midgate and crawl in the bed. From there you can undo the cover latches to remove them, or just use a flashlight to undo the bolts on the handle assembly and then you can open the tailgate from the outside by pulling on the catch rods.
@@takeroadslesstraveled6505 i know about the tail gate but i also have alot of tools inside i am a finish carpenter...but yea i think i am just goin to take everything out and go thru the tail gate
I have to change mine I just bought a new one but I don't have replacement bolts I didn't have them, so I'm asking what kind of bolts do I use?
Why do you need new bolts? If you can, just use the old ones.
@takeroadslesstraveled6505 when I got the truck it didn't have a handle,that's why I'm asking. It has to be a certain kind of bolt right?
If the tailgate was locked, how do you get in the tailgate when the handle doesn't work?
Open the midgate, crawl into the bed, unbolt everything from the inside. Crawl back out, finish the handle replacement, do a happy dance.
Thank you for this! I almost tried it myself, but took it to a trusted body shop instead. Since the replacement (Dorman, also. I did get GM clips for the rods as recommended by some). my tailgate does not lock. The guys at the shop say it's because it is not a genuine part. Has anyone else had this issue, and is there a fix for it instead of getting a new part? I have not found a video specific to the lock. Thank you.
It’s most likely due to the lock tab being bent and it not allowing it to line up properly.
@@takeroadslesstraveled6505 That's great info. Thank you!
@@takeroadslesstraveled6505 What does it need to line up with? I'm thinking about taking a look at myself.
Thx
glad to be able to help
Ok, but how did you get the tailgate open?
If your bed covers are in place, open the midgate and crawl into the bed. You can either undo the latches for the rear cover, or you can remove the 2 bolts holding the handle cover on.
Once the handle cover is off, you have access to the rods. Pull them both towards the middle of the tailgate at the same time and you can lower the tailgate.
What about the key lock unlock tailgate
The lock barrel is all part of the cover piece, so your key still works fine. Just be sure to have the actual lock bar that’s part of the handle lined up properly.
Thank you brother i watch utube videos to fix stuff . One more thing off the list (CHECK)
Glad it helped!
What if the bed cover is on?
Open the midgate, crawl into the bed and undo the cover latches. That’ll let you remove the cover to have access to the bolts.
I can't open the door to get to the screws
Drop your back seat and open the midgate. That gives you access to the bed so you can access the screws.
Are we supposed to just automatically know how to undo the clips with a flat head or did I miss something?
I seen one where they used like a small long hook pick, but I just used a screwdriver not too big went in through the side of the clip and it pops off pretty easy
I did not show it, but all you have to do is place a small tip flat head in the lock tab of the clip and separate it. Super easy.
Another question the lock doesn’t goes all away down. 😳
Most likely one of your rod tabs (the one on the lock side) is out of place. Make sure it’s rotated the correct way - I point it out in the video. Otherwise, it will interfere with the lock cylinder.
Also, check to make sure the tabs for the lock aren’t bent out of shape.
@@takeroadslesstraveled6505 I did… thank you so much.. 😘😘
You’re so cute 🥰… question how can I open the tailgate? The handle is all broken
If your covers are in place, Lower the midgate and then remove the cover bolts by crawling into the bed through the midgate. If they’re not, remove the cover. Then, get ahold of the two rods and pull them towards the center of the tailgate.
@@takeroadslesstraveled6505 ok I will try that.. thank you handsome
Where can I find the rods. I’m missing one
You’ll need to source them from either a parts truck or a dealership. To replace the rods you’ll have to remove the entire plastic tailgate cover which is held on by both double sided tape and retainer clips. I would highly suggest getting new clips from the dealer as they tend to break.
Your Local junk yard
Can you just use all thread? Like 1/4"? Or 1/8" which ever it is.
@@jfarrar231 you could as long as it's the same diameter as the factory rods. But, you'll also have to bend it to match the factory rods to function properly.
@@takeroadslesstraveled6505 I used 1/4" all thread and didn't have to bend anything. I didn't even have to modify anything other than cutting the 3' rod to size. 2002 avalanche 2500
Someone replaced mine with a handle without a key lock :-(
You can swap your old lock cylinder over.
The rod clips are by no means as simple as you make them out to be; they won’t stay shut and they are the biggest P.I.T.A. about this otherwise pretty cool truck.
The clips should close easily once the rods are in place. If the clips aren’t closing for you, check to make sure the rod is lined up correctly, as well as that the clips are oriented correctly.
GM junk sucks, why plastic, but they use is so shoddy it breaks too.